iRobot Hand Survives Brutal Stress Test From a Baseball Bat

Roboticists have to come up with all sorts of creative ways to stress test their robots. You wouldn’t want your robo-maid’s arm to collapse under the weight of that food-laden serving tray, would you? So iRobot went straight to a baseball bat to demonstrate the resilience of a prototype robotic hand it’s been experimenting with.

Unlike most robotic body parts, which are made of rigid materials, this hand is made of flexible and soft rubber-like polymers. This means that instead of requiring extraordinarily precise, calculated movements to manipulate object, the robot’s fingers can press against things until they bend and grip. The individual fingers house electronics like tactile sensors and fishing line connected to motors that control movement.

“Our hand actually uses contact with the environment to manipulate various things,” Chris Jones, director for research advancement, told IEEE Spectrum. “We leverage compliance, so we don’t depend on expensive sensors to position the hand.”

And since the hand is flexible, it won’t get smashed to smithereens when a baseball bat swings to hit a ball and thwacks a few robo fingers in the process.